NIMES, FRANCE - A man drove into a crowd of patrons gathered outside a bar in the southern city of Nimes early on Friday (Sept 14), slightly wounding two before hitting a security barrier and being arrested, witnesses and local officials said.

The 32-year-old suspect, believed to be a local, sped towards a crowd of about 50 outside the bar at around 1am (7am Singapore time), witnesses at the scene told AFP.

However, his white Peugeot ran into barriers set up for a popular weekend festival featuring bull-fighting, which attracts thousands of people each year.

Several witnesses told AFP that the man shouted "Allahu Akbar" (God is Greatest) during the incident.

A source close to the investigation said the man was not known to police for suspected radicalisation.

The region's public prosecutor Eric Maurel said the suspect tried to flee but was caught and roughed up by the crowd.

He was in a state of "mental confusion" during his arrest and has been hospitalised, Mr Maurel added.